Vaqueros Split Weekend Doubleheader Against West LA
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – Santa Barbara City College's rally in the second game of Saturday's doubleheader fell just short as the Vaqueros finished the day with a win and a loss against West LA College.
Santa Barbara relied on strong pitching and timely hitting to take the first game, 5-1.
Koehn Thomas started on the mound for the Vaqueros in Game 1, earning his first win of the season. He pitched four innings, allowing just one hit, one walk, and no runs while striking out seven. Trevor Kester-Johnson navigated trouble in the fifth inning without allowing a run, and Caiden Christianson closed the game with four innings of relief. Christianson earned a save, giving up one run on three hits and striking out seven.
Catcher Aiden Camberg opened the scoring for Santa Barbara in the fourth inning with a triple into the left-center gap, driving in Ethan Rodriguez from first. Cole Ide followed with a sacrifice fly to center, scoring Camberg and giving the Vaqueros a 2-0 lead.
In the fifth inning, Will Matuszak singled and advanced to third base with two outs. His aggressive baserunning pressured West LA pitcher Michael Hernandez into a balk, allowing Matuszak to score.
The Vaqueros added insurance runs in the eighth inning. Ben Fabbian drove in Camberg with an RBI double, and Sean Asperger followed with an RBI single to score Fabbian.
Santa Barbara battled back in the second game of the doubleheader but fell short in a 6-5 loss.
Nick Putnam started Game 2 and recorded six strikeouts and three walks over three scoreless innings. Shaan Castro struggled in the fourth inning, giving up a run on a wild pitch and allowing a bases-clearing double. Despite recording two strikeouts, Castro was tagged with the loss.
Darren Orlando, Max McGrady, and Adam Tripp each pitched scoreless relief appearances without allowing a hit. Seth Slaigel gave up two runs in the top of the ninth.
Trailing 4-0 in the bottom of the fifth, Matuszak delivered again with a two-run single to cut the Wildcats' lead in half. In the seventh inning, Matuszak reached on an error, allowing Asperger to score, but Ben Strutt was thrown out at the plate.
The Vaqueros entered the bottom of the ninth trailing 6-3. They loaded the bases on three consecutive walks. Nicolas Aguirre scored Fabbian with a fielder's choice to make it 6-4. With two outs, a Wildcats error allowed Asperger to score, bringing the Vaqueros within one.
With the tying run on third base, Rodriguez struck out to end the game as Santa Barbara's rally came up short.
Santa Barbara is now 2-1 on the season. The Vaqueros travel to Monterey Peninsula College on Thursday.